Single control valve device for regulating temperature and flow to a selected outlet from hot and cold inlets



United States Patent Jose Juan Cordova Chirlmay 65, Buenos Aires,Argentina 735,076

June 6, 1968 Nov. 24, 1970 lnventor Appl. No. Filed Patented SINGLECONTROL VALVE DEVICE FOR REGULATING TEMPERATURE AND FLOW TO A SELECTEDOUTLET FROM HOT AND COLD INLETS 11 Claims, 9 Drawing Figs.

U.s. Cl. 137/597, 137/625.17; 251/287 rm. Cl. Fl6k 19/00 Field ofSearch137/625. 1 7, 1 597 56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,945,6462/1934 Kumpman et al 137/597X 3,168,112 2/1965 Kungler 137/625.173,202,181 8/1965 West l37/625.17

Primary ExaminerRobert G. Nilson Attorney-Waters, Roditi, Schwartz &Nissen ABSTRACT: A valve device has a single central control forcontrolling the flow and regulating the temperature of two fluids, foruse as a unitary selector in bath and shower combinations or similarassemblies. The valve device has a main body with two fluid inlets andtwo fluid outlets and a shaped selector member is mounted within thebody and is able to the desired outlet is selected and the flow as wellas the mixing of fluids is established within the body from the inletsto the selected outlet.

Patentgd Nov. 24 1970 I v 3,542,066

Sheet 1 of5 Patent ed Nov. 24, 1970 3,542,066

Sheet 3 of 3 SINGLE coNTnoL vALvE nEvrcE FOR REGULATING TEMPERATURE ANDFLOW .TO A sELEcTEn OUTLET FRQM HOT AND COLD rNLETs This inventionrelates to a valve device, and particularly to a valve device having asingle central control capable of dosifying the flow and regulating thetemperatures to two fluids, mainly for use as a unitary selector in bathand shower combinations.

The invention replaces the valve devices used-at present as assembliesto provide hot and cold water in showers andimmersion baths and which,notwithstanding the several different mechanical combinations offered,require a relatively complicated manipulation and are not protectedagainst erroneous handling or'absentmindedness that may causedisagreeable and even dangerous unexpected conditions.

The singlecentral control ofthe present device can replace, with greattechnical and economical advantages, all the combinations now in use,for it allows an easyand permanent regulation of flow and blend from amaximum to a minumum of hot and cold water at the tap of the immersionboth or at a shower that maybe connected to the same pipe circuit.

It must be noted that the foregoing resultsare obtained by means of asingle movable member which is lodged in a bush placed in a centralchamber in the a valve body, which assembly can, moreover, be replacedwhen needed by any unskilled person. 7

As it will be seen hereafter, the body of this device has two lateralvalve chambers that lodge valve elements also replaceable, said valvesregulating the input of fluid and allow,-

The following description refers to a particular embodiment of theinvention, that is given only as an illustrative example of its nature,and making reference to the accompanying drawings where:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of the device;

FIG. 2 is a frontal view in which the device has a different butequivalent type of handle, for better illustrative purposes;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the device;

FIG. 4 is a sectional plan view of the device;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the bush;

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal section through the bush of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a side view ofthe movable member;

FIG. 8 is another view of the movable member, rotated 90 from the FIG. 7position, and shown partially in section; and

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal section of another version of the movablemember. 1

In all these FIGS. the same reference numbers indicate the same orequivalent parts.

As may be seen in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the device includes a body 1 having.a central cylindrical hollow portion 2 open at both ends flanked by twoother hollow cylinders 3 and 4, in-

tegral with it and of smaller external diameter. Near one end "of saidcentral portion, there are two diametrically opposite cylindricalchambers 5 and 6 open at one end and communicating with cylinders 3 and4 through ports 7 and 8 (FIG. 4),

while at right angles to said chambers two diametrically oping thefollowing functions: preestablishing the volume at each water inlet, beit'hot orcold, in relation to the pressure in the pipe lines;hermetically closing one or both water lines; in the event that one ofthe pipes becomes empty they automatically block itv and preventintercommunication; to automatically balance any eventual difference inpressure between hot and cold water; to blockout the passage of waterwhen it becomes necessary to replacethe central assembly and, finally,they may carry acoaxialfilter. i I

The. mention of. all these multiple functions implies, of

1 present to cover them areno longer necessary.

outlets. The manual control, consists ofa handle that is rotatable aswell as axially displaceable, while suitable indicators,

guides or'notches are correspondingly placed in the cover or body, toshow the different functions:

' The rechangeable central assembly has inlets and outlets convenientlyplaced for guiding the water within the valve body, and there are alsoprovided grooves that carry sealing rings of a suitable material, such.as neoprene, while similar rings may be placed atany port requiring anhermetic seal. Externally, the body is provided with at least one hotand one cold water inlet placed at the same or different planes,

and at least one outlet that may also be placed at the same or adifferent plane with regard to the inlets, the angle between thelattermay also be up to 180.

The contact-surfaces of the movable member and the bush may also besealed by sealing rings placed in grooves at one or both saidsurfaces..The central member communicates, by

means of an inner peripheral chamber in the bush, with the water inletsand outlets, all the required combinations being obtained by axial androtational movements of the handle placed at the external end ofsaidrod, the amount of fluid flow being regulated by an outward movement ofthe handle, while the blend for'the required temperature is obtained byrotation of the latter to one side or the otherofa central point, whilea 180 rotation of the handle, that can be effected only with the systemclosed, turns the water flow from the bath tap to the shower and viceversa.

course, that all the additional cocks and taps that are used at v positecylindrical hollow projections 9 and 10 extend from the central portion,with which they communicate.

The end of the central portion 1, adjacent to the above projections isclosed by a sealing nut 11 having'at the inner surface of its frontalface 12 two concentric grooves 13 and 14 connected by a slot 15, while asmall internal passage (not shown) in the central portion, communicatessaid grooves with projection 9 or 10.

At the other end of the central portion a hollow retaining member 16open at.both ends, is threaded, the internal walls having a step 17, thepurpose of which will be described hereafter.

Within cylinders 3 and 4 a valve assembly is placed, being formedby acoaxial rod 18 threaded into a sealing member 19 placed at the frontalopening of the cylinders and seated on a gasket 20, said rod ,18 havingan end that projects externally from the member, through a sealingring'2l, and provided with a diametral groove 22. At the other end, avalve member 23 is telescopically placed in a coaxial recess 24 of therod by means of a slidable stud 25. The chambers thus formed incylinders 3 and 4 communicate with. the central portion 1 throughcorresponding ports 26 and 27.

Within said central portion 1, a removable bush 28 (FIGS. 5 and 6)extending over the whole length of portion 1, is lodged and held inposition by means of a pin 29 retained by member 16. Bush 28 is providedwith at least three peripheral grooves 30, two of which are placed nearthe ends and another at approximately its middle portion, each groovecarrying a sealing ring 3l. Near the end of the bush contacting thesealing nut 11, and between two of said grooves 30, two-diametricallyopposite wide openings 32 and 33 are provided in correspondence with theopenings of projections 9 and 10, while the inner walls of the bush 28,following said central groove, have a recessed portion '34 that formsaninner peripheral chamber which is, in turn, followed by twodiametrically opposite parts 35 and 35' placed at right angles withregard to openings 32 and 33.

The bush 28 carries a movable conformed member 36, FIGS. 7, 8 and 9,that constitutes the basic element of the device, as it will be seenfurther on,

This conformed member of general cylindrical shape has, near the endadjacent to the sealing nut 11, a peripheral groove 37 thatcarries asealing ring 38, while a port 39 is placed close to this groove andcommunicates with an inner chamber 40 that extends along a portion ofthe member 36, and has two diametrically opposite ports 41 and 42 placedat right angles to port 39 and flanked by two grooves 43 and 44 carryingsealing rings 45 and 46.

Adjacent to sealing ring 46, the member body has an external recess 47that occupies at least the whole width of the body and has a flat bottomof substantially square shape, that is parallel to the axis of ports 41and 42. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, recess 47 is replaced by achamber 48 having a plurality of transverse grooves 49 that form asemicylindrical grated zone 50in body 36.

At a distance from groove 47, or of grated zone 50, there is anothergroove 51 carrying a sealing ring 52 and, adjacent to it, two oppositeplane recesses 53 and 54, having the same angular orientation as recess47; that is to say, their bottom planes are parallel to the axis ofports 41 and 42.

Said recesses 53 and 54 are followed by a throat 55 and a step 46 whichis continued by a stem 57 that passes through retaining member 16 andprojects from it, an actuating handle 58 being placed at its protrudingend. As seen in FIG. 1 this handle may be shaped as a lever, in whichcase it is articulated on the end of stem 57, or it may have any othersuitable shape and be securedly mounted on said stem by suitable means.

Finally, a removable stud 59, indicated by a dotted circumfcrence inFIG. 4, slightly protrudes from the inner wall of bush 28, this studbeing placed in correspondence with throat 55 and in the same generatrixas the one in which the center of port 39 lies.

The foregoing is, of course, a structural description of the basiccomponents and their relative disposition in the device. It is obviousthat the shape or dimensional relationship of at least some of them maychange without altering the basic functional characteristics of theassembly, as hereafter described.

The connection to the main piping system is made through chambers 5 and6, by any suitable means, coupling to each of them the cold and hotwater supply lines, respectively, while the pipe leading to the tap iscoupled to projection and the one leading to the shower is connected toprojection 9, although this order may be reversed without altering thefunctional characteristics of the device.

When the conformed member 36 is completely pushed back within bush 28,as shown in FIG. 4, and valves 23 are seated over ports 7 and 8, thedevice is dry, no water being admitted beyond chambers 5 and 6. In orderto place the assembly in operation, rods 18 are turned by engagement ingrooves 22 so as to make them emerge further from members 19, thus opening valve members 23 which are then pushed back from ports 7 and 8 bythe pressure of the water contained in chambers 5 and 6, telescopingstud 25 into recess 24, on rod 18. The flow of water entering thechambers of cylinders 3 and 4 can be regulated simply by rotating therods 18 so that the normal operating position of valve elements 23 iscloser or farther away from ports 7 and 8, depending on the pressure ofwater in the pipes and the amount that should enter the device and,consequently, be dispensed therefrom.

When the conformed member 36 is at the position shown in H0. 4, ports 35and 35 in bush 28 and, in consequence, ports 26 and 27 in correspondencewith them, are closed by the body of member 36. The direction in whichthe water is desired to flow, that is to say, if the tap or shower is tobe served, is selected by suitable indicia placed at the front cover(not shown) of the device and a corresponding indicator in handle 58.When this handle is turned to place the indicator in coincidence withsaid indicia, port 39 in member 36 faces the general direction ofprojections 9 or 10, having its axis in the same plane, but notcoincident, with their axis, this port being blinded by the inner wallof bush 28 when member 36 occupies the position shown in FIG. 4.

The flow of water through the device is started by pulling handle 58,with which member 36 is moved axially, giving rise to several operationssimultaneously, these being that stud 59 passes from the throat 55 overrecess 53, or 54 depending on the position of handle 58, until it abutsagainst the body of member 36; the walls of member 36 slide from ports35 and 35' allowing the chambers of cylinders 3 and 4 to communicatewith recess 34 and, in consequence, with the inner peripheral chamber 34in bush 28; in turn, ports 4] and 42 slide over to said chamber 34 and,therefore, the latter becomes communicated with chamber 40 in member 36while, at the same time port 39 becomes aligned with the selectedopening 32 of bush 28 and, in consequence, with the correspondingprojection 9 or 10, as the case may be.

The hot and cold water currents that flow through ports 26, 27, 35 and35 become properly mixed within the valve body before reaching theoutlet towards which it is directed.

The blend of hot and cold water for attaining a desired temperature isobtained by rotating the handle 58 slightly to the right or left, as thecase may be, which movement permits the underpart of recess 47, or itsequivalent in FIG. 9, to partially screen the ports communicating withthe chambers of cylinders 3 or 4 which are opposite to the sense ofrotation, diminishing the flow of water through them while increasing,in a same amount, the flow that passes through the opposite ports intorecess 47. It may be inferred from the foregoing that the angularmovement of handle 58 need be very slight for reaching the desiredtemperature at the output ofthe device.

If only one inlet is to be used, be it hot or cold, handle 58 is rotateduntil the plane bottom of recess 53, or 54, that faces stud 59, abutsagainst it, in which position the underbody of recess 47 closes theabove referred ports and the recess faces the opposite ones, whichbecome completely open.

It is also evident from the above description, that to decrease the flowat the outlet it is only necessary to push handle 58 slightly, andpartially screen ports 35 and 35 with a portion of the body of member36, while the rest of the inner passages become obstructed in a similarmanner. If the pressure on handle 58 is maintained, member 36 isreturned to its original position and the flow of water at the outletceases.

As it may be inferred from the above structural description, as well asfrom the drawings, any leak is prevented by the sealing rings carried bythe bush 28 and member 36 while, on the other hand, these rings mayeasily be replaced, when necessary, simply by withdrawing retainingmember 16 and sliding forward bush 28, thus allowing removable stud 59to emerge from the central portion 1. When this stud is withdrawn member36 may be slided out from bush 28. Before carrying out this operation,it is of course necessary to close the valve devices in cylinders 3 and4, while any vacuum at the bottom of the device that may be produced bythe sliding movement of member 36, is prevented by the communicationprovided through grooves 13 and 14 at the sealing nut 11, and theinternal passage that connects them with projections 9 or 10.

Iclaim:

l. A valve device having a single central control for dosifying the flowand regulating the temperature of two fluids, mainly for use as aunitary selector in bath and shower combinations, or similar assemblies,and comprising a main body having two fluid inlets and two fluidoutlets, and a generally cylindrical selector member which is able toperform controlled sliding and rotational movements within the body whenactuated, said member being provided, near its rear end, with aninternal chamber having two diametrically opposite inlet ports at anend, and one outlet port placed at right angles to said inlet ports andnear the other end of the chamber adjacent to the end of said member,the outlet port being turned -towards the general direction of theselected outlet by a rotational movement of the member, and placed incorrespondence with said outlet by an outward sliding movement of saidmember, while an internal recess in the valve body and a correspondingexternal recess in the member allow the fluid flow to circulate from theinlets to the selected outlet, through said internal chamber of saidmember.

2. A valve device as claimed in claim 1, in which the internal recesssurrounds said cylindrical selector member at approximately its middleportion, and the shape of the external recess in said member is that ofat least a semicylinder, both recesses being in correspondence when thedevice is at its closed posi- 4, A valve device having a single centralcontrol for dosifying the flow and regul atin'g the temperature of twofluids,

- mainly for use as a unitary selector in bath and shower comby twoopposite flat surfaces; a removable stud projecting from the inner wallof the body in correspondence with said throat, allowing said member tobe fully rotated when at its closed position, while one or other of saidflat surfaces abutagainst said stud when the device is at its openposition, the outward sliding movement of said memberbeing limited alsoby said stud in combination with the step formed in the member body bysaidflat surfaces.

5'. A valve devicehaving a single central control for dosifying the flowand regulating the temperature of two fluids,

mainly for use as a 'tinitary selector in bath and shower combinationsor similar assemblies, and comprising a main body having two fluidinlets and two fluid outlets, and a selector member placed'withinsaidbody, said member-being able to perform controlled sliding androtational movements in thebody when actuated, by which the desiredoutlet is selecteda'nd the flow as well as the blend of fluids isestablished within the body fromsaid inlets to the selected outlet;.said member being of general cylindrical shape and provided near itsrear end with an internal chamber having two diametrically .op-

posite inlet ports at an end, and one outlet port placed at right anglesto said inlet ports, near the other end of said chamber adjacent totheend of the member, the outlet port being turned towards the generaldirection of the selected outlet in the device by a rotational movementof the member, and placed in correspondence with said outlet by anoutward slid:

ing movement of the member; an internal cylindr'ically-shaped recess insaid body surrounds the selector member at approxibeing placed at eachinlet-and provided with means for regulating the fluid flow that passesthroughthem; a generally cylindrical selector'me'mber provided near itsrear end, with an internal chamber having two diametrically oppositeinlet ports at anen d. and one outlet port placed at right angles tosaid inlet ports and near the other end of the chamber and jacent to theendof said member, the outlet port being turned towards the generaldirection of the selected outlet by a rotational movement of the memberand placed in correspon-.

dence with said outlet by an outward sliding movement of said member,while an internal recess in the valve body and a core correspondingexternal recess in the member allow the fluid flow to circulate from theinlets to the selected outlet, through said internal chamber of saidmember.

7. A valve. device, as claimed in claim 6, in which the interv nalrecess surrounds said cylindrical selector member at approximately itsmiddle portion, and the shape of the external recess in said member isthat of at least a semicylinder, both recesses being in correspondencewhen the device is at its closed position.

8. A valve device, as claimed in claim 6, in which the exterx nal recessof said member is covered by a grid 9. A valve device having a singlecentral control for dosifying the flow and regulating the temperature oftwo fluids, mainly for use as 'a unitary selector in bath and showercombinations or similar assemblies, and comprising a main body havingtwo fluid inlets and two fluid outlets; a removable bush placed ..withinsaid body and having an internal peripheric recess approximately at itsmiddle portion; a generally cylindrical selector member provided nearits rear end, with an internal chamber having two diametrically oppositeinlet ports at an end and one outlet port placed at right angles to saidinlet ports and near the other end of the chamber adjacent to the end ofsaid member, the outlet port being turned towards the general directionof the selected outlet by a rotational movement of the member, andplaced in correspondence with said outlet by an outward sliding movementof said member,

an external recessin said member placed correspondingly to vsaid'peripheric recess in the bush, both recesses allowing the matelyits middle portion and is placed in correspondence with a recess shapedat least as a semicylinder carried by said member, when the device is inits closed position, saidrecesses and ports allowing the fluid tocirculate within the device from inlets to selected outlet when theselector member is in an advanced position. v

6. A valve device having a single central control for dosifying the flowand regulating the temperature of two fluids, mainly for use as aunitary selector in both and shower combinations or similar assemblies,and comprising a main body having two fluid inlets and two fluidoutlets; a valve assembly fluid to flow from the inletsto the selectedoutlet, through said internal chamber of said member, when the device isoperating.

' 10; A valve device, as claimed in claim 9, in which the internalrecess surrounds said cylindrical selector member at approximately itsmiddle portion, and the shape of the external recess in said member isthat of at least a semicylinder, both recesses being in correspondencewhen the device is at its closed position.

11. A valve device, as 'claimed in claim 9, in which the external recessof said member is covered by a grid.

